Five Finnish defensemen played in the NHL in 1989-90: Numminen, Lumme, Ruotsalainen, Siren and Gronstrand. Of those five, the right-shot Numminen (6-foot-2, 198 pounds) and the left-shot Lumme (6-1, 210) would have been an obvious choice to be the top pair. They were smart players with lots of hockey sense and size.

Barkov has been named team captain for Finland’s squad that will take part in next month’s 4 Nations Face-Off. “It's a huge honor,” Barkov said Thursday, following the announcement. “I'm really thankful for that opportunity to be a captain of the national team, and can't wait to can't wait to get going in the tournament.”

Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs has been selected as the U.S. captain for the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off.

After becoming the first Finnish-born player to captain a Stanley Cup champion, Aleksander Barkov was named captain of Team Finland for the upcoming 2025 4 Nations Face-Off on Thursday. “It’s a huge honor,

One of the best players in the game will be leading his team into the first “best-on-best” tournament in several years. On Thursday, Finland revealed that Florida Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov will be the team captain at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off.